I know of a few. I can't pretend to understand the struggle they went through but they persisted and eventually ended up in good positions. One that stands out got a job at a decent language centre island-side which was relatively low hours and with good support. That allowed him to focus and specialise on Oxford RWI and now he's made a good reputation for himself. Charges min HKD 600 / hr for private lessons on the side and has a waiting list of students as far as I understand.

If you are going to do private tutoring in HK,tell noone and trust noone.Better to keep your head down.A lot of foreigners there are quite bitter and vindictive when it comes to the earnings of others, and if a fellow foreigner who is a tutor, working at a centre or otherwise, finds that you have plenty of private classes and are pulling in the cash, you may find that person goes from friend to "frenemy", lots of those about in HK....so be careful, it's dog eat dog, that is pretty much a given for the local chinese populace, but it also very much applies to a lot of the foreigners there as well. If you see it as, I stepped off the plane alone, and I will leave on the plane alone, you will be fine.

If you are going to do private tutoring in HK,tell noone and trust noone.Better to keep your head down.A lot of foreigners there are quite bitter and vindictive when it comes to the earnings of others, and if a fellow foreigner who is a tutor, working at a centre or otherwise, finds that you have plenty of private classes and are pulling in the cash, you may find that person goes from friend to "frenemy", lots of those about in HK....so be careful, it's dog eat dog, that is pretty much a given for the local chinese populace, but it also very much applies to a lot of the foreigners there as well. If you see it as, I stepped off the plane alone, and I will leave on the plane alone, you will be fine.

My own experience has been much more positive than Siologen's. The teachers that I have reached out to have been on the whole friendly and supportive, and likewise I have advised quite a lot of other teachers on how to improve their own situation. For example, I run a fairly large Whatsapp group in which we share advice, ask questions, share job referrals etc etc. It's been a great source of information and help for many. Then again, it's important not to take our own personal anecdotal evidence and spin that up into a false generalisation.

So having said that, my take on it is this. Use common sense. If you are tutoring illegally, naturally it makes sense to keep a low profile. Be sensible and things will go fine. If you are tutoring legally, then who cares what other 'so called friends' think or say about you. Focus on what's important and keep it professional.

Use common sense. If you are tutoring illegally, naturally it makes sense to keep a low profile. Be sensible and things will go fine. If you are tutoring legally, then who cares what other 'so called friends' think or say about you. Focus on what's important and keep it professional.

To tutor legally in Hong Kong you need to register yourself as a Sole Proprietorship (SP) for tax and accounting purposes. You have to invoice your students and keep accounts. It's fairly easy to register as an SP but there are conditions on who can apply. In general you need the right to live and work freely in HK. You cannot apply for an SP while under a standard working visa.

To tutor legally in Hong Kong you need to register yourself as a Sole Proprietorship (SP) for tax and accounting purposes. You have to invoice your students and keep accounts. It's fairly easy to register as an SP but there are conditions on who can apply. In general you need the right to live and work freely in HK. You cannot apply for an SP while under a standard working visa.

1) Does it cost anything to register? Could I just register just in case, & leave it blank if nothing happens.......?

2) Could I do the accounts myself & save paying an accountant? I won't go above the tax threshold for sure anyway.

You can get a standard working visa for tutoring quite easily. Many agencies (mine included) will sponsor home tutors. It isn't difficult at all.

Whenever a teacher approaches us with a request for students to tutor we have them sign a contract and offer them a work visa. We ask them what hourly rate they want then we fill their schedule with students as they become available. It is 100% legal and you do not need to register as a business.

You can get a standard working visa for tutoring quite easily. Many agencies (mine included) will sponsor home tutors. It isn't difficult at all.

Whenever a teacher approaches us with a request for students to tutor we have them sign a contract and offer them a work visa. We ask them what hourly rate they want then we fill their schedule with students as they become available. It is 100% legal and you do not need to register as a business.

Tim

Interesting. How do you get around the salary requirement? Do you guarantee an income regardless of whether you can find sufficient working hours for a tutor?